A frontend for your headless CMS: build vs. buy vs. page builder

A headless CMS decouples content from the frontend, which means someone still has to build that frontend. There are three routes: a CMS starter, a custom build, or a visual page builder. This is the honest comparison.

Option 1: the CMS starter

Official starters are ideal for learning and proofs of concept. As a production storefront you keep developing the design system, components and page logic yourself and maintain them across upgrade cycles.

Option 2: the custom build

Maximum control, highest effort. Expect a six to twelve month build phase plus ongoing maintenance by an in-house frontend team. It fits when frontend engineering is your strategic core competency.

Option 3: the visual page builder

A frontend layer with ready-made components, hosting and a visual editor in the platform. Marketing and editorial teams build pages themselves, and time-to-launch drops from months to weeks.

• Starter: cheap to start, expensive to operate
• Custom build: full control, slow and maintenance-heavy
• Page builder: fastest launch, cross-functional, backend-agnostic

Which route fits you

If you have a dedicated frontend team and pixel-level requirements, build it. If you want to keep your CMS and go live fast without a double-digit engineering investment, use a page builder such as the Page Builder for TYPO3.

FAQ

Is a starter enough for production? Rarely. It is a code sample you keep extending, not a finished product.

What is the real cost of a custom build? Six to twelve months of engineering plus permanent maintenance, which usually exceeds a page builder's total cost of ownership.

Read more about the category: what a Frontend Management Platform is.